software that collects personal information about the user be that mining one's workstation or monitoring one's behavior

voluntarily using such software makes it no less spyware

spyware is malware

most google software is spyware: google profits from information collection and displaying ads targeted to harvested information. Even when people knowingly install such software it is no less spyware or malware. Google Chrome is spyware: why else would google assign every user a UNIQUE non-cookie id? All the better to track you with my dear.

(Iron, built on chromium like chrome is built on chromium, however is not spyware. SRware makes Iron. Use Iron if you want chromium goodness. Iron comes with adblocking)

most software in the android market is malware posing as freeware. that software which renders internet ads is: adware (showing ads), spyware (collecting information about which sites one uses and which applicaiton one uses, and details about one's phone), and malware (acting against the best interest of the user). Root your android phone (with z4root or SuperOneClick) and install DroidWall, Permissions Denied, Privacy Blocker, Tasker, and LBE privacy guard to stop most of that shit.

"paying" developers by allowing them to privacy rape you is FOOLISH. That COST is too high